The Grand Finale of Birthdays!

She is FIVE!

The little lady was able to celebrated her birthday with family friends. She is unique at this gathering by being the only one not present the last time we were together. Here goes the explanation...The Weeks were our closest friends when we lived in Arizona. They moved to Georgia and we moved to Utah one year later, that was almost six years ago. So they have only seen the little lady in pictures.

The Weeks came our way to deliver their oldest son to the fabulous BYU! Lucky us, it gave them an excuse to come to Utah. While they were here we had a little adventure in the Alpine Canyon. See the smiling faces at the beginning of this uphill climb!

It took one hour and serious courage to reach the opening of the Timpanogos Caves. Once there we waited our turn to be guided through by a forest ranger. The tour was fun and informative but upon its completion we exited the caves to a major down pour! The ranger said we could wait it out since the decent was said to take 45 minutes. After ten minutes of no change in the weather we decided to make a break for it...25 minutes later we had safely, although thoroughly drenched, reached the bottom!

Fun times!

Family Times...

The beautiful new Oquirrh Mountain Temple.

Our family had a wonderful time touring the new building in South Jordan.
Father's Day!

Two Steps Forward, Two Hundred Gallons Back...

It may look like a scary sea creature, but it is actually the last remaining fan currently drying out our house. So here's the thing...

Late one night after everyone returned to their presently occupied homes a newly installed valve decided to become the sole creator of its own indoor water feature.

The valve in the upstairs kids bathroom came loose and allowed gallons of water to flow throughout the top floor before deciding to forge a waterfall down the stairs, onto the main level and then down into the basement.
At 10:30am the next morning our contractor was the first to discover this new development. We heard from him around twleve after he had begun the recovery efforts. He called to inform us and suggest we keep the impessionable ears of our children away until he had further time to cool down.

Upon my arrival that evening I quickly noted that things were in good hands. Thirteen fans and three dehumidifiers were busy doing their best to dry the place out. Sheetrock has been removed in several locations, but it looks worse than it is. Appariently we were not meant to move in right away, but the job progresses!

The greatest blessings appear to be, first, none of the new construction was permantenly damaged, and second, we may get our hardwood floors refinished (which they needed).

The craziness continues!

All About the Big Man!

In May we continued with our birthday celebrations! First dad had to share his special day with Mother's day. He was a good sport and the kids pulled double duty fixing all the meals themselves! Then the big guy turned eight ten days later, and that's a big deal around here!

With his newly acquired age he enters the peculiar world of Scouts, beginning with his first pinewood derby entry. Behold the Manchester United car! Weighing in at exactly 5.0 ounces! (Unfortunately the wheels were not perfectly aligned so it came in the middle of the pack. Still not bad considering it was put together in less than 24hours!)
He won the best Sponsor Award!

The best part about turning eight...Getting baptised!

He was baptised June 6th by has father and confirmed a member of the church and given the Gift of the Holy Ghost by his father again with Bro. Mike Shelley (his Primary teacher) and Uncle Steve.

Our guests included Uncle Steve, Aunt Tonya, cousin Will, Bonnie and Michelle, the surprise guest, Grandma "B" and the Shelley's (not pictured).

What an exciting weekend we had! Growing up can be so much fun when surrounded by people that love you! Happy Birthday Big Guy! We look forward to many more exciting milestones!

Preschool Graduation!

The youngest of our clan has completed her first graduation! She looks so pleased about it too!

I love that as this picture is being taken her wonderful teacher is reading how sweet and loving she is, can you see the love!?

Truly our youngest is a sweetheart and just isn't very fond of being put on the spot.

She had so much fun going to Mrs. Kristi's twice a week this year. She was taught all the letters and much, much more. I'm not sure what stuck, but I know she had the kind of experience that will prepare her socially for kindergarten and she knows there is at least one more caring adult out there in the world that loves her...what more could a parent ask for?!


Loves for her Daddy!

Congratulations Big Girl!

Saturday, May 16th

A very full, theatrical Day...

We began the day in Provo at the Creative Dance performance where we were treated to a simple 35 minute program of 7 dances. The dancers at our performance time ranged in age from 4 to 13. Each school year we travel weekly to Provo for lessons and instruction with one choreographed performance at the conclusion. It has been a fun way for our daughter to express her creativity and learn new skills in a very uplifting and flexible format.

Next stop: The local Junior High where four of the six 2nd grade classes performed their individually created operas. They were given expert guidance in writing, composing, and staging their works of art. It was a great experience for them and I'm happy to report that after viewing each classes efforts, I can safely say my son's was the BEST! (No parental bias at all!)

Way to go Elves!

Costume Change: Out with the Creative Dancer, in with Cinderella...

Add to the mix, Goofy!In between the 2nd Grade operas the Elementary School Choir performed a Disney medley. Our two oldest children have had fun this year participating in "Shelly Sounds" which is directed by a very creative and talented woman. They have each enjoyed the opportunity to sing and dance with multiple performance.

It's a well rounded ship we are sailing here! Bravo! Bravo!

April Birthdays

Crazy Girl celebrates the advancement to double digits!

Best Friends enjoyed cake, treats and a little Hanna Montana in the form of music and movie.
After passing the final mile marker of adulthood (age 25, all legal privileges are granted including renting a car) birthdays seem to loose a little luster. When I woke up the morning of my birthday I wasn't sure what I really hoped for but I was wishing I had a sister to call up and see the Tulip Festival with. When I expressed my feelings to Glen he offered to go. Honestly I didn't think it would be the same (he being a guy and all), but he surprised me once again by being an entertaining and appreciative companion! I had a wonderful day with calls from family and friends, a well needed pedicure and a gathering of book buddies in the evening.
The tulips were plentiful and absolutely beautiful, but Glen was most taken by the largest man-made waterfall, he is a guy after all!
Sharing a birthday has its challenges, but luckily I share it with a very generous guy! This one celebrated 12 amazing years! Wow, I've been doing this parenting thing for a while now...
Glen took these boys on what will go down in our family as the most successful birthday party to date! The little-big man chose ice skating as his activity and who better than a Canadian wonder to be their guide! Each of these boys had been either once or not at all, but as boys will do, they eagerly took on the slick surface.

Our birthday season is packed, but fun...Stay tuned for the May/June edition!

Quick Home Update!

Life has been busy since we returned from our fun trip! We have had many birthdays and end of the school year activities, plus the usual chaos of soccer games and practices... But through it all our house does continue to evolve!

Here are a few pictures of the latest changes.

First: The awesome arch above our new tub in the Master bath.

Second: The enclosure of the new masterbath shower. We traded the positions of the toilet/bidet room and the old shower. We get a bigger shower this way and the solo toilet didn't need quite so much room.

Third: This is the shower tiled! This picture does not begin to do it justice! I adore travertine and our tile guy did a great job putting it together. In the picture it has yet to be grouted and the fixtures are not yet installed, but you get the basic idea.


Fourth: The master bath tub! We changed out the window so we get an unobscured view of the mountains and added more of that lovely travertine. We just need to figure out the window coverings before treating the neighbors to a shocking reverse view.
Well there is much to still be completed, but for the moment (or at least a week) the work is in our hands while we paint, and paint, and paint some more!

Fleeing the Country...

Rome in Springtime...

As if our plates weren't full enough with the remodeling of our home and keeping pace with four beautiful children,we decided to leave the country for two weeks...So pop some popcorn, sit back and enjoy our little slide show (you determine the length of your torture!)

Here you see Tonya kicking back in one of the classically modern seats in the Paris underground (referred to as the Metro in most places). This would be the economical way to get around and not too hard to figure out if you're adventuresome!

On our second day in France we headed out to the"Louis's" homestead...just a little place called Versailles. I can't believe it took the French so long to storm the place! We spent an entire day there and still didn't see everything.

Here is the backyard...even bigger than mine! The crowds weren't too bad this early in the season, however if you needed a restroom the line came out and around the corner! I would like to come back someday and see the gardens in bloom.
One interior shot...the famous Hall of Mirrors. Glen enjoying is audio guide. Unfortunately the actually history of France wing was closed, so most of the details went over our heads.
We had to include a shot of the Eiffel Tower, though we did not ride to the top on this visit.
This was our favorite patissier! On our last visit to Paris we would stop in here for lunch and get a small quiche or toasted bread with ham and cheese. However on this "what can go wrong, will go wrong" trip they were out by the time we got there...another time maybe.
After two cold, rainy days in Paris we hit the skies and flew to Venice to begin our tour through Northern Italy.

We didn't actually go on and expensive gondola ride since the views were the same on foot and much cheaper! Getting lost was half the fun, but I must say after only two days I think we were getting the hang of things and could find our way around, besides it's an island, you can't go too far!

We took a "taxi" ride over the little island of Murano where Venetian glass is made. We watched this man make a horse and another blow glass. I had hoped to buy something special to bring back, but in all honesty, Venetian glass is pretty gaudy. It was fun to watch though!

After Venice we traveled by train to Rome. After finding our beautiful hotel at the TOP of one of Romes hills(by foot), we went to see some sights. The rain continued to follow us on our travels, working in our favor at the Colosseum where few people were as crazy as us standing in the rain.

The next day we did get some clear skies. As hard as I might, I couldn't comprehend how long these ruins had been there...too much Hollywood desensitization and Las Vegas reconstruction!

We did stop in to visit with the Pope, but he was busy doing other things, masses and honoring a new saint to name a few. We did pay the outrageous fees to visit his collection of stolen goods, missing amazing treasures in the sheer vastness of it all. The greatest let-down for me was missing the "Hand of God" in the Sistine Chapel due to the almost violent nature of the Vatican museum guards. It's a crazy story, but lets just say I've never seen anything like it on Temple Square! And if your head isn't spinning enough, how about a trip down these exit stairs?

When in Rome, or anywhere else in Italy for that matter, wander into churches and look up...you're sure to be amazed!

After almost three days in Rome we hit the trains again, destination Florence. When in Florence you must visit the Duomo (Santa Maria del Fiore). At first this building looks fake, then upon closer inspection you realize it is just covered in crazy colored marble. These guys put all their money on the outside, leaving the inside pretty plain.

The one exception being the dome that is extravagantly painted with some of the most horrific images I have ever seen! The priests of this church kept their congregation in line with the visual threats of Hell depicted above...not good! I bet their collection plates were full!

We paid for the privilege to get a closer look at those images and climb 463 steps!

Some of those steps get mighty small and rise at dangerous angles. Obviously Italy doesn't have the problems with lawsuits the US faces!

Once at the top there is a beautiful view of Florence if you aren't scared out of your mind to enjoy it!

My personal motto: Take pictures...look later!

Hilton is our hotel of choice because Glen acquires so many points with travel, but in Florence it was too far out of town so we chose something else. We found this place on the Internet and weren't sure what to expect..but how can you go wrong placed between Tiffany's and Burberry?! Really it was a fun place in an old building turned beautiful hotel. After Florence we were headed to The Cinque Terre, but swung by Pisa on the way and see if we could help with their leaning tower problem. Turns out it's not much of a problem since I think it's the only reason people stop here.
When we arrive in the beautiful village of Vernazza (one of the five villages that make up The Cique Terre)we still had no place to stay. Glen left me and our gear at the top of the village street and took off in hopes of finding a room with a view. While he inquired about, found, and inspected such a room I stood dutifully protecting myself and our things from a torrential down pour! It was as if the heavens decided to empty buckets of water in record time! Glen returned twenty minutes later dry and happy with his findings...lucky for him, it was a great room! Our landlady for three nights was Amelia and she was everything you expect an older Italian woman to be!

Our view of the marina and village square. The villages seems to be divided by the young people serving the tourists and the older generations sitting around gossiping about the same transient crowd. The church bells ring every 30 minutes and the ocean provides peaceful background, the pace is slow and the views are astounding!

Corniglia in the background... All the villages are built on the ocean side hills with paths connecting the dots.

In Monterosso we found a welcome reprise from pizza...an Italian Cheeseburger! At the "Fast Bar" we downed two burgers grilled on a panini machine, made with ficacia bread and the regular American fixin's...Yum, Yum!

Wow, that's Good!

After fueling up we decided to tackle the "hardest" section of the "connect the dot" paths. At this point (45 minutes in) I was relatively happy. There was solid ground on both sides and a clearly defined path, not something that could be said during most of that two hour hike!

A half hour left to go!

When we did reach Vernazza (our home base) we were thrilled and smelly! With a week and a half under our belts and a few more days to go, we decided to do laundry...the Italian way! We washes our clothes and then hung them to dry on our very own clothes line.

Our Vernazza piazza!

Gelato two or three times a day, rain or shine!

Our final train to Milan, the backpacks we carried everything in, and one of Glen's signatures smiles!

Our final stop in Italy, Milan. Twenty minutes was all I needed in this city, to see their Duomo, fancy shopping mall, and get on live Italian MTV three times. They were shooting in the square while we were there so I just walked into the shot, pretty cool!

This man was on the street carving the most beautiful things from vegetables.

Closing thoughts...

Italy is a beautiful country full of cultural wonders and antient history. I'm glad I was fortunate enough to see these things and relax in the slow paced village of Vernazza. I will always treasure the memories, but...There is no place like home! I missed my family and way of doing things, right or wrong, they make me who I am. Hopefully I will be able to take the things I appreciate most from those around me in this beautiful world and improve who and what I am.

A special thanks to everyone who made this trip possible...Rick Steves for his detailed and funny guide, Glen for funding this expedition, and especially our children's Grandparents for caring for them in our absence. Thank You!